Simple Business Planning for the Freelance Makeup Artist

If you are serious about building your freelance professional makeup artistry business and want to earn a full-time income doing what you love, we suggest putting your goals on paper. Many people think that business planning is complicated; they don’t want to waste their time. However, a simple business plan will help you solidify your vision and also provide clarity on what you want from your business. Business planning doesn’t need to be complicated. Keep it simple!

Here are some easy business planning ideas to consider….

Business Description

Who, what, when, where. Describe who you are, what your business does, when your business will operate as well as where your business will be located. In addition, what are the short-term and long-term goals for your business? Where do you see your business 1 year, 2 years, 3+ years from now?

Products/Services

Describe what services you offer and what products you intend to sell. Focus on the benefits to your customers. We suggest making a services and product menu.

Market Analysis

This is the part where people often feel overwhelmed. A typical market analysis will include demographics, industry outlook, and historical and current marketing data. However, in the interest of keeping your plan simple, we suggest focusing on a few key points.

Make a list of your potential customers. Where will you find them?

Make a list of your local competitors. Highlight their strengths and weaknesses in comparison to the services/products you offer.

By making a list of your potential customers and competitors, you will become aware of how to align or differentiate your business with what is already happening in your local area.

Sales & Marketing

Make a list of how you intend to market your business as well as the resources that you will need. Get all of the ideas that you have on how to market your business out of your head and onto paper! Will you be marketing word of mouth? Will you have a website or blog? Will you print brochures and business cards? Will you partner with local salons/photographers?

People

Make a list of everyone who will likely be involved in your business as well as what they bring to the table. This will help you identify strengths and weaknesses to make sure that you know who your go to people are for every service that you offer. Will you be a sole owner/operator? Will you hire employees? Do you have resources you can call if you become overbooked?

Financial Plan and Projections

Financial planning is another area that most people full overwhelmed. The idea is to project how much it is going to cost to operate your business as well as what you intend to earn. Start your financial projection by making a few simple lists.

Revenue

Services: How many services to you intend to perform per month? How much will you charge per service?

Products: How many products do you intend to sell per month. What is the cost for each product? What is the amount you sell each product for?

Expenses

Marketing: Take all of your marketing ideas and assign each idea a cost. For example, how much will it cost you to build a website, maintain a website, print brochures, print business cards, join local networking organizations.

Operating Costs: Make a list of all your general operating costs (e.g. phone, rent, office supplies)

Where to go for additional assistance

If you need assistance in business planning or marketing, we suggest contacting the Service Core of Retired Executives. SCORE is a nonprofit association dedicated to helping small businesses get off the ground, grow and achieve their goals through education and mentorship. SCORE has over 340 chapters nationwide and offers free mentoring services, free business tools, templates and is an invaluable resources for people who are just getting started with their business.